Bulging arms spin wildly as long boats barrel through the big whitewater of the Upper Gauley River. Kayaks and canoes flash past spectators without showboating or breaking for any unnecessary slick maneuvers. Time is of the essence in this competition. This is wildwater.

In mid-April the country’s top wildwater paddlers convened on a five-mile, class III stretch of the Gauley in West Virginia’s Monongahela National Forest to compete for a coveted spot on the U.S. National Wildwater Team. Also up for grabs was a chance to compete at the World Championships in Garish, Germany, as well as six other World Cup races this summer in Slovenia, the Czech Republic, and Switzerland.

Wildwater is a classic down-river race with either sprint or classic longer distances. No man-made obstacles are imposed and no points are given for tricks-it’s all about downriver speed.

Competitors ran the course twice during the weekend, combining times for an overall percentage score. Bryson City, N.C., resident Chris Hipgrave won the senior K1 (one-person kayak) competition. Hipgrave, a paddler and coach for the NRC Rhinos, was the odds-on favorite and is one of the most accomplished wildwater paddlers in the world.

The biggest surprise of the weekend, though, was 18-year-old Geoff Calhoun of Bethesda, Md. Although the lone junior male paddler, Calhoun actually posted the fastest overall time of 15:09.7, besting Hipgrave by almost 30 seconds and earning himself a spot on the senior team.

“I was pushing really hard,” said Calhoun after Saturday’s run. “There was a little bit of wind, and the river was a little bit flatter than it was earlier in the week. I wasn’t sure if the lines I was running earlier in the week were going to work, but it all came together.”

Despite retaining his position as first boat on the national team, Hipgrave was disappointed with his performance. “For me personally, my run on Saturday was terrible,” he said. “Overall I felt lethargic and not on my game.”

Still, the experienced veteran of a growing wildwater community was more optimistic about future events in the area. During the week preceding the competition, Hipgrave said he experienced fantastic practice runs on the rain-induced high water of the Gauley and nearby Cherry River. The area has become known to whitewater connoisseurs as the Fruit Basket for its big selection of tasty paddling spots.

“If we could get some high water on the Cherry, it definitely has the potential to host some world-class competition,” Hipgrave said. A personal commitment kept Hipgrave from joining the team in Germany last month, but he has since joined the team for the six remaining world cup events.

Chara Whittemore of Friendsville, Md., won the K1 women’s competition, and California’s Tom Weir cruised to victory in the one-person canoe category. Winning the K1 women’s junior event with the second best female overall time was Emily Stein of Chattanooga. Other Blue Ridge paddlers on the national team are Shaun Smith, Lincoln Williams, Rob Murphy, John Pinyerd, and Amy Walters.

-Jedd Ferris